Experimentation
by ABitOHoney
Summary: Sakura is assigned a special mission involving researching Jinchuurikis and their Bijuus. Her test subject: Gaara of the Desert. While discovering the cause and effect of the Bijuu, she is led to an unintended discovery: her attraction to Gaara. GaaSaku
1. First Session

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto or the respective characters.

* * *

_A/N: Just felt it necessary to define a few terms used in the story because I have a suspicion that some readers may not have seen Shippuuden yet, or just haven't caught the terms._

_Bijuu: a powerful demon_

_Ichibi: specifically a one-tailed demon (Shukakau)  
_

_Jinchuuriki: Host of the Bijuu (Gaara and Naruto)_

_Now, on to the story..._

* * *

**Experimentation**

**Chapter 1: First Session**

* * *

Sakura's emerald eyes slowly wandered across the towering walls of sand at the entrance to the Hidden Village of Sand. Glancing over her shoulder at the desolate land where she had ventured from, she started to question if she should have come there alone. Sure, there were ties between the leaf village and the sand village, but who's to say those ties wouldn't break, and with Gaara as her objective, she didn't feel exactly at ease.

Earlier that day, Tsunade had called Sakura into her quarters, claiming she had a one-man-, or one-woman- in her case, mission for her. Tsunade had mentioned she felt it would be beneficial as a medic-nin for Sakura to study the nature and affects of Bijuu on their hosts. Naruto was of course the first subject suggested for the experiment, which at first he was more than willing to volunteer himself as a guinea pig to Sakura, but as soon as the word "needle" was mentioned, he quickly changed his mind. Given Naruto's stubborn refusal, that left Sakura with the only remaining known Jinchuuriki; Gaara of the sand. Though Sakura was rather uneasy about the idea of being in a room alone with the infamously unstable Gaara, she was more afraid of what her mentor would do to her if she refused.

So there she was, standing at the entrance to the sand village, having no idea what to expect. The fingers of her left hand squeezed tightly around her medical bag handle. She sighed deeply before brushing the wrinkles away from her shirt, and strolled through the entrance to the sand village.

* * *

Sakura did not make it far into the village before she was greeted by Gaara's former sensei, Baki.

"We've been expecting you. And I must say that I am rather pleased that you chose to perform such an experiment on our Kazekage."

Sakura offered a gentle smile and a nod as she silently followed Baki.

Once inside the Kazekage tower, Baki turned to Sakura and pointed towards a flight of stairs. "Gaara's office is just up these stairs and to the right. He is expecting you, so do not worry about interrupting him. If you need anything, supplies or medical aid, please let me know. I'll be down the hall here in my office."

"Thank you," Sakura replied before turning to the stairs. She gazed up, feeling rather apprehensive, and slowly made her way to the next floor. Stopping before the large door to Gaara's quarters, she took one last deep breath before reaching for the doorknob. Before she could lay even a finger on the knob, the door suddenly swung open abruptly, startling her. She yelped, stumbling back several inches before finding herself caught by her right wrist. She lifted her head quickly, to find that the hand holding her wrist belonged to Gaara, who stood, expressionless and stoic as usual, in the doorway.

As Gaara released Sakura's wrist, Sakura quickly looked away, a slight blush sweeping over her cheeks.

_Real smooth Sakura. _Inner Sakura taunted. _A little on edge, are we?_

Sakura pushed aside her nagging inner self and turned her attention back to Gaara. His listless eyes were locked on hers, making speaking, or functioning in general, even more difficult for her.

"Good afternoon Kazekage-sama. Sorry to intrude, but is now a good time for…"

Gaara interrupted, and thankfully broke the gaze. "Please come in Sakura." He turned and took several steps into the room before turning again towards the entrance to watch Sakura. "And please, just call me Gaara. There's no need for formalities."

Sakura cleared her throat, the lump that had formed nearly choking her. She would have been quite flattered by Gaara's chivalry, had it not been for the immense nervousness that had now swept over her. After she stepped into the room, Gaara pushed the door closed; adding to the sheer discomfort of the situation.

Sakura's eyes quickly scanned the room, trying desperately to find something, anything, to keep her attention off Gaara's intense gaze. She was somewhat taken aback when she stumbled across a picture hanging on the wall of him and his siblings. She walked past Gaara and to the wall holding the picture. Upon closer examination, she noticed Gaara looked surprisingly content in the picture, with Temari's arm over his shoulder. She turned, ready to ask Gaara a question pertaining to he and Temari's relationship, but was startled to find him standing directly before her, his eyes glued on hers.

_Damn. Doesn't this guy know it's rude to stare?!_

"Was there something you wanted to say?" Gaara questioned, apparently noticing Sakura's mouth had opened then shut quickly.

"Uhh… well, nothing important. I was just curious about your relationship with your sister Temari." With Gaara's eyes still locked on Sakura, she turned to a small table sitting at the side of a couch at the center of the room. As Gaara gave her a simple reply, she made her way to the couch, setting her medical bag on the table beside it before taking a seat.

"We don't speak much." Gaara walked over to the couch, but did not sit down, and instead stood towering over Sakura.

"Why don't you take a seat beside me, and we'll get started on the tests." Sakura gently patted a hand on the couch seat at her side, offering a reassuring smile to Gaara, who looked to be somewhat uneasy as well.

Gaara sat down, but at the complete opposite end of the couch. Sakura had to stifle a giggle, but with his eyes still on her, he could clearly see she was laughing.

"What?"

"Nothing, sorry. Could you maybe sit a little closer… and actually, I need you to remove your vest and coat." Sakura reached into her medical bag, removing a large syringe.

Gaara muttered an apology before standing to remove his vest. Sakura waited patiently as he unbuckled the two straps of his vest, letting it fall onto the arm of the couch. His long trench coat soon followed, leaving his upper body only covered by a short-sleeved mesh shirt. He sat back down, close to Sakura as she had requested, but too close, nearly on top of her. Sakura's cheeks flushed as the bare skin of his arm brushed against her own. She pushed herself as far against the corner of the couch as she could to leave her enough room to do her work. Gaara's expressionless eyes were glued to hers once again as she reached for his arm.

"I'm just going to take a couple blood samples to start out," Sakura explained as she took Gaara's arm in one hand, and the needle in the other. Gaara's arm twitched, just slightly, as Sakura gently held his arm up. She was rather surprised at the smoothness of his skin, half expecting it to feel more like something that resembled sandpaper. Hoping to distract Gaara's attention from her and the needle, Sakura returned to the subject of Temari. "Do you get along with your sister?" As she had anticipated, Gaara's eyes averted to the picture on the wall.

"We get along. We just don't really talk."

Sakura turned Gaara's arm, allowing her access to the underside of his arm. She pressed her thumb against his skin, searching for a good vein. "Why don't you two talk?" She watched Gaara's expression closely through the top of her peripheral vision as she slowly inserted the needle into his arm. She almost expected his sand armor to appear and prevent her from using the needle. No sand appeared over the targeted skin, and his emotionless face did not waver, his eyes remaining on the sibling picture as if in thought.

"Women make me uncomfortable."

Surprised that Gaara had used the term 'women' rather than something expected like 'female', Sakura's eyes averted from her work on Gaara's arm up to his face. He was staring again. His eyes almost had a hypnotic affect. She found herself unable to pull her own eyes away.

_Why is he making me so damned uncomfortable? What's with his eyes?_

When his words finally registered in Sakura's head, she wondered if she was making him feel just as uncomfortable as he was making her. As if answering her question, Gaara clarified his response.

"You don't make me feel uncomfortable, Sakura."

Sakura was taken aback, not only by the actual words, but the fact that he had admitted to them. She forced herself to look down at the needle in her hand, which she then realized was completely full. She gently removed the syringe, dispensing the red liquid into a small glass vial she had pulled from her medical bag. She noted that there were small traces of fine grains of sand within his blood, but the image did not concern her much. Returning to his arm, she reinserted the needle for one more sample. Gaara had now taken his eyes from her and lowered them to the needle, fixating on the clear glass as it slowly filled with his blood.

After a moment of awkward silence, Sakura jumped back into the conversation, but not quite in the way she had intended.

"Have you ever been with a girl?"

_What the hell kind of question is that? You don't just ask the Kazekage a question like that!_ Sakura inwardly scolded herself, knowing the response would be an unpleasant one.

"Yes."

_That was a surprisingly simple and calm answer._

"Really? I mean... I don't mean it like that... I just..."

"I've been with my sister most of my life."

Sakura raised her head, a smile playing at the corner of her mouth as she tried to refrain from laughing. "I meant... been **with** a girl... you know... like a romantic relationship." She couldn't believe her own words, and even more, she couldn't believe Gaara was so willingly and calmly replying.

"No."

Sakura noticed a strange twitch at the corner of Gaara's right eye. She gazed down at his arm, surprised to find the vein she was extracting blood from was unusually protuberant. She shifted her hand on his arm, thinking the position might have been a bit unpleasant. His chakra seemed to suddenly fluctuate beneath her touch.

"Gaara, are you feeling alright?"

"I'm fine." Without his own consent, Gaara's tongue snaked out across his dry lips. Realizing what was happening to him at the sight of blood, he forced himself to look away, turning to one of the room's small round windows, watching the clouds pass by in the blue sky.

Sakura could see that he was lying, and judging by his actions, the Bijuu inside him was coming forth at what she presumed to be the sight of blood. Wishing not to stir up anything dangerous, Sakura slowly removed the needle and once more dispensed the crimson liquid into the glass vile, releasing his arm from her other hand in the process. She made a mental note of her observation.

_The one-tailed demon is clearly driven by carnal instincts. The sight of blood heightens the host's adrenalin and chakra levels._

After setting down the emptied syringe, Sakura turned to Gaara. With his attention on something outside, she took the moment to observe his physical stature. His face, though stern and almost completely unreadable, was actually rather handsome. Her eyes traveled down to his stomach, then back up to his arm. With only his small fishnet shirt on, she noticed his unmistakably toned abs and muscular arms. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught glimpse of a small trickle of blood escaping from his needle puncture. Before it could slip down the side of his arm and onto the couch, she swiftly grasped his wrist with one hand, using the other hand to run her index finger across the bloody trail.

The touch immediately caught Gaara's attention, and as he turned to find his own blood being swiped up by Sakura's finger, he instinctively grabbed her wrist, sharply pulling her hand to his face.

Sakura released a small yelp of surprise, followed by a gasp as she watched Gaara close his eyes and slide her index finger into his mouth. She said nothing, just gazed, completely awestricken, as she felt Gaara's warm tongue swirl around her finger, lapping at the traces of his own blood.

Despite being somewhat entranced by the unexpected actions of Gaara, Sakura was able to notice a strange chakra flowing beneath the hand that held his wrist. Seeing that Gaara's eyes were lightly closed, she allowed her eyes to travel curiously to his arm. A faint red glow emanated from his arm.

_That must be his Bijuu's chakra. Shukaku's chakra._

Gaara's eyes suddenly shot wide open as realization crashed into him like a freight train. He quickly removed Sakura's finger from his mouth and released her wrist.

Sakura lifted her head, her eyes meeting Gaara's, both equally wide. She released his wrist as well, allowing both her hands to fall stiffly at her sides.

Then there was silence, horrible, awkward silence, and more staring, but now even Gaara looked bewildered.

Gaara was the first to speak, breaking the silence, but doing nothing to lessen the uneasiness.

"Water?"

Sakura's brows raised in question to the one-word statement.

Gaara cleared his terribly dry throat.

"Do you want some water?"

Sakura quickly nodded. The atmosphere since she had arrived had left her mouth feeling parched.

Gaara wasted no time in taking off to the hallway to retrieve the water, leaving Sakura to momentarily ponder her situation in solitude.

Unfortunately her moment of solitude was short-lived as Gaara quickly returned to his quarters, carrying two small glasses of water.

"Thanks," Sakura spoke softly as Gaara held out a glass before her. She took the glass, and slowly sipped at the cool and refreshing water, watching Gaara carefully as he took a seat on the couch again. Traces of red chakra still swirled around his arm. She temporarily ceased her intake without removing the glass from her lips as she watched Gaara in awe. He downed the clear liquid almost instantly, as if he had gone without liquid refreshment for days. She wondered if it was only due to the fact that he lived in a desert, and not to mention, he probably had a constant taste of sand in his mouth. As he set down the now empty glass on the table at his end of the couch, Sakura merely brushed off the contemplation, satisfied with her derived explanation.

Sakura returned to sipping at her water, and turned her attention to the blood-filled glass vial lying on the table. Her mind traveled back to the incident just moments before.

_What sort of reaction was that? Was it blood lust? Or just... lust? No... it couldn't be._

Sakura gently placed her glass on the table and turned to Gaara, ready to speak, but was taken aback once again by his intense gaze on her. She just could not seem to get used to his eyes being on her at all times. She cleared her throat, as if to ease the discomfort, and looked to one of the round windows lining the room.

"I'd like to try examining your chakra now." Sakura attempted to speak assertively, but her true feelings had her voice shaking. She cleared her throat again before continuing. "I'd like to compare your normal chakra flow to that influenced by the Ichibi." She paused for several moments, waiting for any protest Gaara may have with the matter. Satisfied with his silence, she stood up from the couch and turned to Gaara, whose emotionless black-lined eyes were still glued to her.

"If you wouldn't mind, I'd appreciate it if you lay down. I'll need to concentrate on your chakra center, and I want you to be as relaxed as possible."

Without speaking, Gaara complied and lay on his back across the couch, resting his head upon the arm.

Sakura reached for a small notebook and pen from her medical bag, jotting down her previous observations before crouching down to her knees besides the couch. She sat her notebook and pen down on the couch at Gaara's side. She noticed Gaara's body was rather stiff and rigid. Her eyes trailed up to his face, where she was relieved to find his eyes were staring up at the ceiling rather than at her.

"I'm going to have to ask you to try to relax Gaara. I need your chakra to flow naturally. I know this is probably a little unnerving, but I promise I will try to make this as comfortable as possible for you." To Sakura's surprise, her words seemed to actually calm the Kazekage slightly, as she noticed his body fall somewhat more naturally against the couch cushions. Unfortunately though, his blue eyes had returned to her.

As Sakura reached out to pull up Gaara's mesh shirt, she detected a slight shake in her hand, and prayed that he would not notice. She slowly peeled the shirt away from Gaara's stomach, revealing his pale flesh. She glanced at his face, curious if he had noticed her trembling hand, only to find he wore the same typical unreadable expression.

_What has me so nervous? It's not like I haven't done this a hundred times before when performing a medical jutsu._

Cautiously, she moved her hands, ready to place them on his abdomen, the center of his chakra circulatory system. Just as her hands touched the soft skin of his stomach, she could feel his stomach muscles quake beneath her touch, and a very soft, almost inaudible groan escaped Gaara's lips. As she pressed her hands more firmly against his body, she could feel him grow tense again. Her eyes caught a glimpse of his hand at his side closest to her, which was now balled into a fist. She needed to relax him if she wanted to do this right. **She** needed to relax.

Sakura took in a deep breath before attempting to speak words of comfort for both her and her test subject. "You don't need to do anything yet. It may help both of us if you just concentrate on feeling your chakra for the moment. This shouldn't take long."

Gaara gave a simple nod and turned his head away from Sakura, allowing his eyes to close and his muscles to relax. Sakura focused her attention on her hands as she held them firmly in place over Gaara's stomach.

Time passed in silence, though only several minutes, it felt more like several hours. Sakura turned her head, curiously peering at Gaara. His eyes were still gently closed. She briefly released her attention from his chakra flow, taking the time to further observe the features less pertinent to the experiment at hand. Without removing her hands from Gaara's abdomen, she readjusted herself so that she sat propped up on her folded legs beneath her, giving her a better view of Gaara. Her eyes fell instantly on his dark red hair.

_I wonder if his hair is as soft as it looks…_

Sakura shook her head in an attempt to dismiss her strange thoughts, but her eyes only found a new feature to ponder; his chest. Regardless of his somewhat slender stature, his chest was well-defined. Though it really should have been expected, being that he was an active ninja, she still found it fascinating. His skin was such a faint shade of peach. It amazed her that he could have such pale skin when he lived in the desert. Granted he did wear quite a lot of clothing, but that did nothing to explain the skin tone of his face. Her eyes trailed back up to said part, where she was startled to find his eyes open and on her. Her body jerked slightly from the surprise.

_God, please tell me he just __**now**__ opened his eyes!_

Sakura laughed sheepishly, offering a fake smile as she tried to cover her slipup. "Everything is looking quite normal. Right now your chakra seems to be flowing at a typical rate for a high rank ninja. Now I'd like to observe your chakra levels under the influence of your Ichibi."

Awkward silence again ensued.

Sakura gave a questioning look, wondering why she was not feeling or seeing any changes.

Reading her expression, Gaara stated it a hoarse voice, "I can't invoke Shukaku's power at will. It's something I can't control."

Sakura was impressed with his relatively lengthy reply, but troubled by the fact that she would have to find some way to summon the one-tailed beast's power.

"Well, do you have any idea what usually triggers it?" she questioned as she tried to remember the things that set Naruto off.

There was a short moment of silence before Gaara finally replied.

"Strong emotions I suppose."

Sakura pondered for a moment, remembering hearing that Naruto's rage had set off his beast's power. Unfortunately, she was not the least bit comfortable with the idea of pissing off Gaara of the Desert. She wished to make it back to Konoha that day in one piece. Her thoughts again traveled to the incident just moments ago in which Gaara had taken her blood-covered finger into his mouth. His chakra had burned red, which had to have been the influence of Shukaku. Her stomach churned at the thought of reenacting said event. There had to be another way.

"To be honest Gaara, I know that engaging in battle with you may trigger something, but I do not wish to even attempt that," Sakura began as she still tried to gather a plan in her head. "I do have one thing in mind…" She paused, her mind going in completely the wrong direction despite her gut feelings.

_Just relax Sakura! You've got nothing to loose here. Besides, this is all in the name of science! Strictly experimental. Just innocent research._

Little did she know, as she argued with herself subconsciously, her right index finger had commenced making soft traces along Gaara's well-defined abdomen.

"What did you have in mind, Sakura?"

Hearing her name startled Sakura back into reality. She looked to Gaara to find his eyes were staring down at her hands. Just as she turned to discover what held his attention, she realized what she was doing. She fell back on her haunches, a blush sweeping across her face and she immediately removed her hands, placing them in her lap. She phased out again, wondering how she was going to go through with this.

"Sakura?"

Sakura's head shot back to Gaara's face again and she forced a reassuring smile. "Well… I noticed earlier… your chakra changes drastically when you're… well… how do I put this… excited." God was it hard for her to even speak her thoughts. If speaking her thoughts was this difficult, she couldn't imagine acting on them.

Gaara stared in silence, leaving them in yet another one of their awkward staring moments.

_Stop being such a pansy about this and just take the initiative! Just tell him what you plan to do and do it!_

Unfortunately, Sakura was not even sure what she planned to do, but she did know it would involve physical contact.

_Kiss him!_

Sakura's green eyes grew wide, astounded by her inner self's suggestion.

_I can't just kiss him._

_Oh yes you can. It's not like he isn't attractive. I mean just look at his body. And his eyes are so mysterious!_

_He is NOT attractive. He's creepy!_

_Creepy, in a sexy way._

As Sakura argued with her inner self, Gaara looked on in wonder, waiting for her to further explain her previous statement, watching her face contort as she seemed to be staring blankly into space.

_If you kiss him, you can touch those wonderful locks of red hair and see just how soft it really is. Besides, you can always argue it's for the sake of gathering information._

_Great! Now I sound like the perverted hermit!_

"Sakura? Are you alright?"

Sakura snapped back to reality once again at the sound of her name. "Sorry Gaara, my head has been a little clouded today. I guess I'm just a bit nervous about performing these tests on you." She hung her head, feeling rather ashamed of how unprofessional she was being.

"Am I making you nervous?"

Sakura looked up to Gaara. He was turned on his side, his upper body propped up by his left arm. Was he actually concerned with her well-being?

Sakura chuckled softly, shaking her head, though clearly he was right to think it.

"No. It's not you." She sighed, feeling somewhat guilty for not being completely honest. "Actually, I find you to be somewhat intimidating, and a little hard to read." She watched his face closely, waiting for any sign of expression change, but there wasn't.

"I don't mean to intimidate you. I'd like for you to be comfortable around me." Gaara's voice was steady, but deep.

Sakura laughed again, trying to hide her embarrassment. "Don't worry. I'm getting comfortable as we speak. So what do you say, why don't we continue the experiment?" She pushed herself back up into her sitting position, resting her rear on her folded legs.

"So what exactly did you have in mind?" Gaara questioned as he returned to his lying position across the couch.

Sakura attempted to swallow the lump that had now formed in her throat. He just had to ask.

_Well it's now or never._

Ignoring all possible dreadful outcomes, Sakura leaned over Gaara, her face hovering mere inches from his. She actually caught his eyes grow wide at her advancement, but her mind was too preoccupied to take much notice. With one hand resting firmly on his right shoulder for support, and the other on the couch beside his head, Sakura closed her eyes and brought her lips to his.

Lights flashed behind her closed lids. It wasn't that it was her first kiss, because it wasn't. It was the sinfulness of the kiss. It was the fact that she was kissing the Kazekage, the desert God, a strong and powerful man. She knew for certain it was his first, and yet, to her surprise, he responded quite skillfully.

Initially, Gaara remained frozen in place, but his lips parted and pushed lightly against Sakura's. But as her hand found its way to his hair, his hand soon followed suit, entangling it within her pink locks as he pulled her head closer.

_His hair really is soft._

Sakura moved her hand from Gaara's shoulder down to his bare stomach. She tried to concentrate on feeling his chakra, but she found herself distracted when Gaara suddenly grabbed both of her arms and tugged her on top of him. Her knee knocked over her notebook and pen, sending them clattering against the floor. She gasped against his lips as she found herself forced to straddle him to keep her balance.

Feeling the need to try to keep things believably 'experimental', Sakura again returned to concentrating on Gaara's chakra levels. It was not long though, before she noticed something different. As they both became short of breath, Sakura could feel a strange aura emanating from much of Gaara's body. She broke the kiss, both of them gasping for breath. Gaara stared up at her, his eyes wide open, and yet his expression was still hard for Sakura to read. Her eyes slowly drifted down to the exposed skin of Gaara's waist. She caught a glimpse of the red glow she had seen earlier.

_Just as I suspected; when in an aroused state, his chakra takes on a significantly different structure. It must be his Bijuu._

Sakura looked back up to Gaara's eyes, which were now more relaxed than usual. Her face was flush, and she knew he had to notice as he stared up at her. She had to make him think this was all strictly for research.

"Well, I'm certainly seeing a change in your chakra." Her words were ragged, despite her strong effort to remain cool and collected. She cleared her throat and turned her head, trying to avoid Gaara's intense gaze. "I find this interesting... and I'd like to take this further... that is... so long as you are comfortable with this."

Sakura mentally kicked herself. Gaara had to find her excuse of 'research' to be phony. She was surprised though, when Gaara gave a reply which, to her, indicated he was naive to her true intentions.

"Do what you must," was Gaara's gruff reply.

Sakura raised a brow. _Does he really not think anything more of this than just... an experiment? Is he really that naive? Well, I suppose he did think that hanging around his sister meant that he had been __**with**__ a girl._ She inwardly shrugged off the thoughts, and returned her attention to her 'experimental subject'.

Slowly, Sakura adjusted herself so that she lay entirely across the length of Gaara's body, resting one leg between his, and the other at the edge of the couch. As she placed her hands on his shoulders, propping herself up just enough to keep her face several inches from his, she became suddenly aware of his breathing. She could feel the steady rise and fall of his chest against her own. Their breathing tempo was remarkably in sync. She allowed her eyelids to flutter close as she took a moment to just listen to and feel their bodies. She had apparently done so for more than just a moment, because Gaara spoke out suddenly.

"Is something wrong?"

Sakura's eyes shot open and she forced herself to smile reassuringly.

_Yeah something is definitely wrong! I'm finding my test subject far too attractive and distracting._

"No. Not at all. I was just... just trying to think of the best way to induce your Bijuu."

_I can't believe I'm going through with this. This is wrong in so many ways._

_But that's why it's so right._

Sakura let her inner self win this time. She let her arms fall just to the sides of Gaara's as she brought her face down beside his. Her nose rested in his hair just above his ear, and she closed her eyes. She inhaled deeply, taking in the sweet scent of his hair as she whispered against his earlobe, "Just tell me to stop if I do anything that makes you too uncomfortable." With that said, she began trailing soft kisses along his jaw line, her mouth coming to rest finally at his parted lips.

Before Sakura could really begin the kiss, she felt Gaara's tongue dart out, sliding across her bottom lip. She unknowingly shivered against him at the new sensation. Soon, she found her own tongue had come out to play as Gaara gently placed a hand in her hair again to pull her into a deeper kiss.

Removing one of her hands from Gaara's shoulder, Sakura began to trace her fingers little by little down his side, the tips of her fingers falling between the holes of his mesh shirt. When her fingers reached the point where his shirt ended, her fingers grazing his bare stomach, she felt his chakra levels grow, creating an almost hot haze around her hand. As she slid her hand beneath the flimsy fabric, she opened her eyes to check Gaara's expression, hoping she was not overstepping her boundaries. Apparently she wasn't, because his eyes were actually closed, a good sign that he was comfortable, and more importantly, not taking notice of her expression.

As Sakura ran her hand gently up Gaara's chest, she finally broke their kiss, gasping for breath again. This time, when she opened her eyes, she took note that Gaara's cheeks were growing flush and his eyes were ever so slightly glazed over.

_Is he actually enjoying this as much as I am? I wonder if he realizes how strongly his chakra is reacting to this._

"Gaara…" Sakura surprised herself with how much her voice dripped with lust as she spoke his name, and even more surprised to hear what sounded to her like a small groan pass through Gaara's lips. "Gaara, do you feel what's happening to you?"

"I feel it," Gaara replied simply.

_Did I just sense a hint of wit in that comment? He does realize I was referring to his chakra, right?_

Sakura's eyes drifted to Gaara's moist, parted lips, and she could feel heat surge through her body, and it wasn't due to the Bijuu's chakra. She almost whimpered as her gawking eyes witnessed Gaara's tongue snake out and run sinfully slow across his upper lip, which only added to the fire rushing over her.

_Is he doing that on purpose?_

Unable to resist, she engaged in yet another fevered kiss with her test subject.

Sakura began to move her hand beneath Gaara's shirt, running it slowly down his soft flesh, letting her fingernails lightly graze his stomach. As she reached the waistband of his black pants, she could feel his chakra levels spike again. His tongue grazed the bottoms of her teeth, causing her to jump slightly. Without realizing it, her hand slid further beneath his waist band, the tips of her fingers brushing against the base of his now fully aroused member.

Gaara's chakra nearly exploded beneath Sakura, startling her into realization.

Sakura gasped, realizing where exactly her hand had traveled. Her eyes shot wide open, and she pulled her head up, breaking the kiss instantly. She removed her hand, placing it anywhere other than on Gaara.

She stared down at an equally wide-eyed Gaara. Fear washed over her like a tidal wave. Nausea filled her stomach, and all she could do was stare in shock and horror as she awaited certain death.

_Shit! I went too far. I over-stepped the boundaries. He's going to kill me right here on his couch._

Gaara reacted outrageously, but not in the manner Sakura had expected. She watched in shock as his eyes narrowed, brows furrowed, and the strange red chakra flared around his body.

"Gaara..." Sakura choked out, unsure of his intentions as he abruptly thrust his hands into her shoulders, propelling her backwards across the couch. She found herself unable to speak or comprehend as her back fell violently against the couch. Gaara moved over her, straddling her in a very dominating position, and took her wrists into one hand, pinning them above her head. His face was twisted into a sick smile, much similar to the one Sakura recalled from the Chunin exams so many years ago. Before she knew it, his hands and mouth were all over her.

While she lay there, unable to move beneath the weight of Gaara's body, she started to feel something unidentifiable swirl around and up her tall boots. She struggled to move her head into a position to see her legs, but she was quickly distracted as Gaara's lips crushed against hers. In the moment the strange feeling passed over the top of her boots, she realized what had been slowly making its way up her legs. She squirmed beneath Gaara as she felt grains of sand swirl around the bare skin of her legs, her fear rising ten-fold. She finally managed to pull her lips away from Gaara's as the sand slipped beneath her shorts, running along her inner thighs.

"Gaara…" Sakura whined, fearing the worst possible outcome. She watched in terror as Gaara's sinister smile only deepened. He brought his face next to hers and whispered in her ear, his voice husky and wet with lust.

"I won't hurt you Sakura."

Though Sakura was fully aware now that his intentions were not to kill, she did not feel any less anxious. Her eyes remained open, unblinking, as she watched Gaara lift his head, his face hovering over hers as he licked his lips slowly, seductively. She was certain this time, that he was doing so on purpose.

With her attention locked on the slowly advancing sand running up her thighs and Gaara's frightening expression, Sakura had failed to notice Gaara's free hand had slipped beneath the waist of her shorts before it was too late. All her breath was released in a sharp gasp as his finger ran across her moist, warm entrance.

"Gaara!" Sakura cried as her back arched, hips thrusting upwards and, unintentionally, aiding the entrance of one of Gaara's fingers. Her eyes closed tightly, every color of the rainbow flashed behind her lids as new sensations filled her senses. Waves of heat shot through her body, and all she wanted was for the experience to never end.

Soon, Gaara's finger was joined by another, earning more whimpers as Sakura writhed beneath him, tugging her arms helplessly in his grasp. She wanted so badly to grab onto his hair, grab onto something to keep her from going crazy with pleasure.

The sensations only grew, over-stimulating her mind and body. She became fully aware of every part of him, where each appendage lay against her body, the ragged and deep breaths passing through his lips, and all the sweet smells of his skin, hair, and breath.

The sand finally ceased advancement, swirling around her thighs just beneath his hand. She finally lost all reasoning, all cognitive thought. Little did she know; she was only further thrilling Gaara with her cries and whimpers of fervor.

She whined his name as he teasingly ran his tongue across her lips. He wrapped his lips around her bottom lip, suckling gently, then aggressively. His fingers delved deeper inside her, and, at the same time, he bit down on her lip. Her body almost quaked. Her hips rose instinctively against his hand. He released her lips, and began trialing his sharp canines along her jaw bone, down her throat, and finally coming to rest at the supple skin where her neck met her shoulder.

Sakura found herself abruptly and violently thrown back into reality as Gaara sank his teeth into the sensitive flesh of her neck. She gasped and her eyes widened as pain shocked her nerves.

Gaara's fingers ceased their exploration as he slowly removed his canines from Sakura's flesh, leaving small trickles of blood at the puncture sites. Sakura could only watch in alarm as he lifted his head, bringing his face over hers and licked his lips hungrily. His chakra was now visibly apparent all throughout his body, and he was eyeing Sakura dangerously. He pushed himself up just enough to break the contact between their chests and stomachs, one hand remaining on her wrists, and the other resting still within her.

_I think… I might have taken this too far._ Inner Sakura finally agreed with the outer Sakura.

Gaara's eyes remained locked on Sakura's for several agonizing moments, until she finally realized that he wanted her to look at something. His eyes began to travel down the length of her body, her eyes following the path. He stopped at the waist of her shorts where his hand had slid beneath. Her eyes stopped there as well, in time to watch him slowly remove his fingers from her hot depths.

"Gaa-ra…" Sakura whined in protest as she watched and felt Gaara's tauntingly slow retreating hand. One finger was completely removed, earning another pathetic whine. She whimpered once more as the tip of the last finger finally escaped.

"Gaa-ra…"

She thought she heard a guttural chuckle, but she was unable to tear her eyes from Gaara's hand, which was now ever so slowly creeping out from beneath her shorts.

Both sets of eyes watched the wet fingers slide erotically up across her stomach. Both watched as he lifted the fingers and held them before their faces, as if Gaara had wanted Sakura to clearly see the wet remnants of her pleasures. Her eyes were fixated on them, but his were locked on the expressions on her face.

"Gaara?" Sakura murmured meekly. She had no inkling what he was trying to do. But it took only the slow advance of his fingers towards his parted lips to figure out exactly what he was doing. Without knowing it, her own lips parted in awe as she witnessed Gaara take his fingers into his mouth, his eyes closing only for a moment to revel in the sweet taste of her juices.

When he finally removed his moist fingers from his mouth, Sakura was at a complete loss for words. She could only stare up at him and wait for his next move. She was certain, after his next words, that he had all along known exactly what the 'experiment' had really been about.

"So Haruno, when is our next session?"

* * *

_A/N: Well, I don't typically write stories such as this (with lemons/limes, or what-have-you), so I would love to hear comments and suggestions. I've thought about possibly writing a second chapter, but I was planning Naruto as Sakura's second test subject, so input on that would be awesome as well. Perhaps if I do another "Experiment" with a different character it should be a separate story? PLEASE review with any comments good or bad. I'd like to know if I should ever even take a stab at another "lemon" story. Thanks for reading!_

_A/N-2 (added 04/22/08): I have decided I will add another chapter with Gaara and Sakura. Not sure how soon I'll have it up since I have other stories to finish and I'm gone for work almost 50 hours a week, but I'll try my best to get it out quickly. If I do actually write a Naruto and Sakura 'experiment' it will be a separate story. As always, I greatly appreciate the reviews!!_

* * *


	2. Interlude

_A/N and Chapter Summary: First off, I want to give a big thanks to all that reviewed my first chapter. I tried to give personal thanks for each person, but I lost track of who I did and did not reply to . So if you review this time, please demand a thanks and I will gladly praise you for taking time to read and review my story._

_This chapter will not contain any Gaara and Sakura naughty-action, so sorry. This is mainly to set up the forthcoming session chock full of naughty-action, and a little reflection on the past experiment (gives you an idea what happened after the slight cliff-hanger). Lots of humor, or at least it is intended to make you smile. :-) Reviews of both praise and criticism are welcome and greatly appreciated!_

* * *

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**Experimentation**

**Chapter 2: Interlude**

* * *

Sakura inadvertently began twirling the ends of her short pink hair around her finger tip as she leaned back against the railing of the balcony just outside Tsunade's quarters. Her eyes wandered to the sky, watching mindlessly as the clouds slowly drifted by. From out of the corner of her eyes, she spotted a glimpse of something brown soaring by. She turned her attention to the object to find a messenger hawk that had apparently been dispatched from the tower.

_I wonder where he is headed..._

Sakura's eyes followed the path of the bird curiously until she was unexpectedly interrupted.

"Sakura!"

Sakura's head turned quickly at the sound of her name, finding her sensei standing before her on the balcony, with Shizune following not far behind.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama?" Sakura cocked her head in curiosity as she noticed her sensei's stern expression, as if she had something important and urgent to discuss. Though it was a rare occasion when she ever saw her sensei wearing any other expression besides solemn, she was always concerned with the possible issues to be presented.

"I have a very important mission for you. It will be another solo mission."

As Tsunade spoke, Sakura thought back to her last 'solo mission' and felt her stomach tighten in a knot. She could never forget her experience with Gaara, though she truly wished she could have forgotten everything. Her dreams were even plagued with the images and feelings of that day. She woke up in so many hot sweats, although not from fear. She wished it were from fear, or disgust, but it was far worse than that. It was from pure, unadulterated pleasure. No matter how many ice-cold showers she took those nights, she just could not prevent her mind from trailing back to the experiment. Thankfully though, she was certain she would never have to see Gaara again, or at least not anytime in the near future.

"I'd like for you to examine chakra depletion and restoration. See what you can find on how quickly chakra can be restored by the subjects own system, as well as with your assistance. Observe the affects on the body during each of these restoration processes... And anything else you find fit to this experiment."

The more and more Tsunade explained the task at hand, the more Sakura began to question her belief of never having to face Gaara again. Her smile slowly faded with each passing sentence from her sensei.

"Perhaps you can find a noticeable difference in chakra restoration through the aid of Bijuus."

Sakura's eyes slowly widened, and that sickening feeling in her stomach began to increase exponentially as she listened closely to the details of her mission.

_Please tell me she's going to suggest Naruto, please!_

"Given such a great outcome from your last experiment, I find Gaara of the Desert to be a suitable subject for this." Tsunade's face twisted into a small, clever smile as she spoke, and Shizune tried to stifle a small giggle, but Sakura had been too frightened and caught up to take notice of either of the women's reactions.

Tsunade had said the dreaded name. Sakura nearly exploded on the inside, yet her outside remained unmoved and almost dazed. On the inside, she threw up, fainted, woke up in shock, and fainted again.

"I suggest you ready yourself to depart by tonight." Tsunade stood with her arms crossed, awaiting a reply from her student, whom she was starting to realize was staring blankly into space.

"Sakura! Did you hear me?! Do you understand your mission?!"

Tsunade's frighteningly deep bellow startled Sakura back into reality, and though she normally would not argue with her overpowering superior, this was a completely different story.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama!" Sakura nearly blurted out, but her voice fell weak as she continued. "But... but I'm not sure that Gaara would make a good test subject... I... I think Naruto may be better since..."

"Do **not** argue with me Sakura! I just sent the request to the Kazekage and we will most likely be receiving his reply by early this evening, so as I said, I suggest you get ready to leave by tonight!"

Sakura nodded her head slowly and muttered a soft "yes" as she gaped at the sky.

_What a horrible coincidence. I would have shot that damn hawk down had I known what he carried with him._

* * *

Somehow, Sakura managed to get her things together quite quickly that evening, despite her procrastination.

_Maybe he will refuse to be a test subject again. Maybe he wasn't the least bit interested in me. Maybe it was completely Shukaku making him act that way. Or maybe it was just a fling and now he's through with me. Hell, since I'm being so damned optimistic, maybe he will have forgotten the whole damned thing! It will be like it never happened!_

She sighed as she flopped down on her bed beside her medical bag, letting her back and arms bounce against the springy mattress. She stared up at the ceiling, a calm expression on her gentle face.

"Who am I kidding?" Sakura spoke aloud unknowingly. "He knows and remembers all that happened. He had to."

Her thoughts again drifted back to that day. She could not believe she had passed out just after her realization that Gaara had been fully aware of her true intentions. Sure, she had already been lightheaded from all the overwhelming emotions and sensations, but to just pass out on his couch like that... so unprofessional... so embarrassing. But it was strange, when she woke up Gaara had set her upright and given her some water. She had noticed the red chakra was no longer present anywhere on his body, and his expression was the same old stoic, like nothing had happened.

"Maybe he really didn't know what happened while in that state."

_He knew alright._ Inner Sakura argued. _And so did you. You saw that devious little smirk playing on his lips as you left his quarters._

Sakura's thoughts traveled again. She remembered being dazed as she gathered her things into her bag. She had muttered a few words, "thank you," and some other courteous and grateful phrases. But what had her really thinking was when she passed through Gaara's door and turned to say goodbye. Though she had been still a little dazed, she was certain she had caught glimpse of a devious smirk form at the right corner of his mouth. When the door had closed before her, she was left standing there, pondering what she thought she saw.

Her attention back to the present, Sakura sighed heavily and let her head roll to the side. She spotted her notebook beside her medical bag and slowly reached for it. Sitting up, she opened the tablet, flipping through the pages until she came upon her notes on her last experiment with Gaara. As her eyes scanned her scribbled annotations, she could feel a blush sweep across her face.

A sudden knock at her door startled her. She quickly closed the notebook, shoving it into her medical bag, and made her way to the door.

She was surprised to find Shizune standing before her when she opened the door, holding out a rolled up piece of important looking parchment.

"This just came in by one of the messenger hawks from the sand village. It's addressed for you... you alone."

Shizune held out the letter to Sakura whose look of wonder now turned to fear.

"Uh... thanks Shizune," she muttered quickly as she snatched the parchment from her hand and quickly shut the door, leaving Shizune rather awestricken and offended by Sakura's rudeness.

Sakura let her back fall against the closed door, clutching the letter close to her chest as she prayed for it to be Gaara's refusal to cooperate as a test subject. Apprehensively, she made her way back to her bedroom, taking a seat once again upon her bed. Slowly, fearfully, she dispelled the seal that restricted the letter from any tampering. As she unrolled it, she could feel her stomach tighten.

_Please say no. PLEASE say no!_

Carefully, she read the message aloud.

"Haruno, I am honored that you have personally requested me as a test subject for a second experiment."

_Personally? What the hell is he talking about? ... Wait... don't tell me Tsunade signed the request with my name... as if written by met! Oh no... She wouldn't... she couldn't!_

Sakura continued reading aloud.

"I feel you accomplished a great deal in the last study, and I was thinking you could share your results with me as we participate in this new experiment. However, I feel we may need to conduct your newest study in a more secluded area, away from the villagers, for safety reasons."

_Secluded? Sounds promising!_ Inner Sakura taunted in a seductive tone.

_There is nothing promising about being with him alone!_

Pushing aside her perverse inner thoughts, she continued on once more with the letter.

"I will arrange to meet you just outside my village's main walls and guide you to the destination I've considered to be advantageous to your studies. I look forward to another session with you. I only hope the outcome will be as stimulating as the previous. Regards, Sabaku no Gaara."

_Stimulating? Why does it sound like he's implying something not research related? Is he toying with me?_

With her sanity on the line as a mixture of emotions flooded her body, she decided to take care of one of those emotions; her frustration. With her goal set on giving Tsunade a piece of her mind about writing a letter under her name, she shoved Gaara's reply into her medical bag and stomped to the front door.

To her surprise, when she opened the door, she found Shizune standing there, ready to knock. Sakura was about to demand an explanation as to why she was still there and begin interrogation with her sensei's meek assistant, but she stopped mid burst when she noticed her sensei was now accompanying Shizune.

"Tsunade-sama?" Her tone had lost all intended fury, replaced by uncertainty.

"What was Gaara's reply?" Tsunade questioned without offering Sakura an explanation.

Hands on her hips, Sakura retorted with her own burning question. "Tsunade-sama, did you write that letter to him under my name?"

Tsunade's stern expression twisted slightly into a playful grin as she replied in a bland tone, "What makes you think that I did?"

"Oh, I don't know..." Sakura began sarcastically, rolling her eyes dramatically as she spoke, "maybe because he mentioned that I had 'personally requested' the next experiment with him!"

Sakura could now see a small smile forming on Shizune's face, which she had quickly tried to cover with the sleeve of her long robe.

"What did you say to him?" Sakura demanded, her arms now crossed over her chest.

Tsunade mocked her, crossing her own arms across her chest as she replied with a faint smirk and a hint of play in her tone, "Nothing much. Just that you had **really enjoyed** your time with him, and that you would **love** to have another date with him."

Shizune stifled a laugh behind her sleeve, only further irritating Sakura.

Sakura's face turned a bright shade of red as fury and embarrassment washed over her. She realized now, that she never should have told Tsunade about her experience with Gaara.

"This isn't funny!" Sakura shouted, startling both Tsunade and Shizune.

Tsunade's face returned to the typical stern expression. "Now Sakura, you had better keep calm. We don't need you going to the sand village with that attitude and getting yourself into trouble. I was only kidding anyway. Though I do enjoy teasing you like you're a little sister, I still am the Hokage, a superior figure. You still have yet to answer my question!"

Sensing impending doom as a result if she further infuriated her sensei, Sakura hung her head in defeat, mumbling a quick apology. "Sorry Tsunade-sama. I'm... I'm just a little apprehensive about this. He said he was willing to be a test subject again."

With Sakura's head still hung, Tsunade shot Shizune a quick smile.

"Good. Then you should probably head out now. I'll expect a full report, with all the details, upon your return."

Sakura raised her head just in time to watch Tsunade and Shizune turn to leave. She sighed heavily, wondering why and how she got into these situations so frequently.


	3. Second Session

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_A/N: It's finally done! Whew! This was a long one! Haha... I said long one... Well, I feel the need to apologize ahead of time for possibly distasteful sex-scenes. I'm not exactly an expert in writing sex-scenes, although I am quite talented at acting it out. J/K. TMI, right? I want to say thanks to all that have read and reviewed my story thus far, and I hope this chapter brings just as much, if not more, amusement._

* * *

**Experimentation**

**Chapter 3: Second Session**

* * *

So there she was, once again, standing before the intimidating, towering entrance to the sand village. Sakura squeezed the handle of her medical bag tightly, feeling she was experiencing deja vu, only this time, her apprehension was for a different reason.

Though only the moon shone in the night sky, it did nothing to eradicate the excruciating heat of the desert. It wasn't long though, before Gaara stepped out into the desolate sand-covered land just outside the walls of his village. Sakura was surprised to find him wearing his white and blue Kazekage robes, even his veiled hat. He wasn't, however, bearing his sand gourd, which actually had her feeling a little more relieved.

Sakura stood planted in place, unable to come up with anything intelligent to say. She just watched Gaara's slow approach, and strained to see his face behind the white veil of his hat. He stopped just inches before her with his head hung low, allowing only enough moonlight to reveal the lower half of his face, which only held an expressionless set of lips. Sakura attempted to swallow the newly formed lump in her throat, only to trigger choking as she sputtered a greeting.

"G...Good evening... Kaze-" Cough. "...I mean... Gaara!"

Sakura mentally smacked herself. Had Gaara's hat not been so low on his face, she was certain she would have coughed up mucus all over his face. Despite knowing she was making her discomfort way too obvious, she held her head high as Gaara slowly rose his own head, revealing the remainder of his pale face beneath the soft moonlight. She was rather taken back by how captivating he looked in his uniform.

"Sakura." He replied with a simple nod.

Sakura brought her medical bag in front of her, grasping the handle with both hands now as she fidgeted with it nervously. He was staring at her, of course, which only made things worse.

_I bet he's undressing you with his eyes._ Inner Sakura whispered perversely inside her head.

Sakura's eyes grew large, and apparently Gaara had taken notice.

"What's wrong?"

"Oh... nothing. I just... thought I saw someone," Sakura lied. Gaara only stared at her in curiosity as she laughed sheepishly.

Gaara gave a short grunt, an almost inconspicuous smirk on his face. He turned his head, taking a quick glance over his shoulders to confirm their solitude. "I suppose we should get started."

Sakura was about to question their location, but Gaara began walking away in quick strides. She released her grip on her medical bag, sighing once before following behind Gaara.

* * *

It seemed as though they had been walking for quite some time across endless dunes of sand, and Sakura was beginning to grow weary. She glanced back over her shoulder at the moonlit sand village that was now almost completely out of sight.

_Where the hell is he taking me?_

Sakura quickened her pace until she strode along side Gaara. She cocked her head to the side, straining to see his face. Unfortunately, the combination of darkness and the shrouding covering at the side of his face left it impossible for her to make out anything. Not that she really expected to see anything other than his typical stern and listless expression, but it would have been a little more comforting to see his face as they walked in silence.

"Um... Gaara? Where are we going?" Sakura questioned hesitantly.

"There," he replied dryly, extending an arm before him and pointing.

Sakura followed the direction of his finger, her eyes falling upon the apparent target. Not far in the distance lay a large and towering sand structure. As they came closer, she realized it was an old abandoned building. The outer walls were covered in many cracks and crevices. It had apparently been there for quite some time, and the walls still crumbled as she and Gaara stood before it.

"What is this place?" Sakura tilted her head back, starting up at the towering building, more questions entering her head... like whether or not the building would be a sound place to work in.

"This is our border guard tower. When there's suspicion of an attack, some of the higher ranks are sent here to scout."

Though Gaara's reply was uncharacteristically lengthy, it sounded forced, as if he was not the least bit interested in taking the time to explain anything. Sakura watched as a chunk of the wall fell from one of the highest points, crashing into the sand mere inches from their feet. Though this basically confirmed her suspicion of danger, she still proceeded with her questioning.

"Are you sure this is a safe place to..." She was abruptly cut off as Gaara began walking towards the building, waving his hand in a gesture for her to follow.

Sakura quickly followed, stepping into the building through a large open entryway, keeping her eyes focused on the ground beneath her feet. She was surprised to find the room was actually glowing, and as she raised her head she found the astonishing source of light. Candles were strewn about the enormous room, which if she had not known Gaara's personality better, she would have found it to be a very romantic gesture.

Her emerald eyes sparkled enthusiastically as she slowly turned her head, surveying the room from one end to the other. There were sets of stairs on either side of the room, leading up to the next level. The ceiling of the current level alone reached almost half the height of the building. There had to be hundreds of candles, the soft light emanating from them revealing crystal-like grains of sand embedded in the walls. As she turned her head fully to her side, she was startled to find herself staring face-to-face with Gaara, the fire of nearby candles reflecting in his eyes. He was standing uncomfortably close, with a stare she felt could pierce all the way to her soul.

Sakura quickly turned her head away, clearing her throat to ease the tension she felt growing exponentially.

"Did you have someone light all these candles for us?" Sakura questioned, looking down at her medial bag to avoid Gaara's intense stare that seemed to never break.

Crossing his arms over his chest, Gaara scanned the room, as if assessing the question he already knew the answer to.

"No. I lit them."

Sakura's head raised quickly, her eyes gazing in surprise.

"Really? I would have thought the Kazekage would have... well... ordered someone else to do something so... tedious."

She started to regret her last statement, finding it possible that he might have taken offense to it. Though she had not intended it, it did sound like she was implying he was haughty.

"It's better that none of the villagers know I'm here. I'm sure the high council would have sent a group to observe."

Sakura's facial expressions softened in sympathy.

"You must get tired of being watched over constantly. I know our Hokage never gets a moment of solitude."

"It gets rather irritating at times..." Gaara's lips curled up at one side, forming a small smirk as he continued, "But I can easily get away when I **really** desire to."

Sakura blushed, catching the subtle insinuation in his response. She decided to change the subject to prevent the possibility of her unprofessional side showing up as it did in their last meeting.

"Well, I think we should probably get started. This may take some time, and we don't need these candles going out in the middle of the experiment."

Sakura set down her medical bag near the entry way, Gaara doing the same with his hat.

"I have somewhat of a dilemma though," Sakura began slowly, her embarrassment over lack of preparedness making it difficult to explain her situation. "I spent most of my trip here trying to think up a way we can quickly and safely drain your chakra. Of course, the first thought was engaging in a sparring match of sorts. Unfortunately, I'm not so certain I'd be much of a match against you. Even if I were, I need to have enough chakra for one of the main parts of the experiment, to test my ability to aid in chakra recovery. Do you have any ideas?"

Gaara stood for a moment, his arms crossed over his chest, staring at Sakura in silence. She prayed it was due to being lost in deep thought, and not that he found her statement ridiculous.

"I'm capable of merging my chakra with sand, and with the amount of sand beneath us, I'd have no difficulty in draining my chakra."

Sakura pondered Gaara's reply, and wondered why she had not thought of it.

"Great, that will work. Go ahead and get started on that. I'm going to jot down a few things in my lab book as I watch."

As Gaara made his way to the center of the large room, Sakura knelt down beside her bag, removing her notebook and pen. She opened to the first blank page, her cheeks turning pink as she again reminisced the last experiment. When she stood back up and turned to Gaara, she was surprised to see he had already taken action.

A thick stream of sand rose from the ground to Gaara's right hand, swirling around his arm as he concentrated his chakra into the fine grains. Sakura watched in amazement as the mixture of particles of crystal-like sands and chakra danced in the soft light of the surrounding candles. She was thankful, as she watched so intently, that Gaara's attention was finally off her and instead on the sand rising and falling from the ground beneath him. She took several steps closer, but kept herself distant enough to prevent any possible harm as Gaara began to focus more chakra and increase the amount and speed of the swirling sand.

She unintentionally took the moment to again observe features less pertinent to her experiment. Watching Gaara's eyes narrow in concentration, she realized what it was about him that she liked so much. Though it was his eyes that made her so uncomfortable, it was those same eyes that she found to hold a hidden and intriguing story. The dark circles around the rims of his eyes spoke of many sleepless nights. His cloudy blue eyes burned with a mixture of passionate emotions; anger, sadness, hate, love, loneliness, desire. In that moment, Sakura began to wonder why she had never noticed these things before. He really wasn't all that scary of a person. He just had a more difficult and unusual history.

Sakura's eyes slowly traveled down to the Kazekage's blue and white robes. She smiled softly, amused by how regal he appeared in the garment. She looked up again, pausing at his contrasting unruly dark red hair. That had to be the next most captivating thing about him, along side his matching kanji tattoo.

Gaara suddenly released an enormous amount of chakra, strong enough to cause a small burst of air to emanate in all directions around his body. Sakura stumbled back several feet, startled by the abrupt gust of wind that swept across her face. The room became dim as sand washed over the floor in waves, diminishing most of the candles. Sakura gazed at Gaara, discovering that his features had turned stern, and he was now using both hands to fuse his chakra with the sand.

"Gaara!" Sakura exclaimed, worried that he might be putting forth too much energy. Apparently he did not hear her, as he increased his output tenfold, causing a whirlwind of sand to form around his body. He released a deep, low growl, his attention fully on the task at hand.

Sakura lifted her notebook to shield her face from the flying sands that whipped against her body. She could feel each tiny grain of sand pelt against her bare arms and legs, causing sharp, but tolerable pain. It was not long though, before she felt the air current diminish quickly. She raised her head, bringing her notebook back down to her side, gazing in awe at the aftermath of Gaara's tremendous power. Only a select few candles remained lit, and a large ring of sand almost knee height had formed around the perimeter of the room. Sakura turned to Gaara, who she realized had begun to stagger, his head hung and his eyes barely open. He was clearly worn down, probably out of chakra.

Sensing Gaara's forthcoming collapse, Sakura rushed over to him, dropping her pen and lab book on the floor. She stopped before him just in time to reach out and catch him as he fell forward into her. She gasped, struggling to hold Gaara up with her arms under his. Knowing she could not keep him on his feet until he regained composure, she slowly helped him into a sitting position on the ground.

"You didn't need to **completely** drain yourself," Sakura chided under her breath as she knelt down at his side, an arm behind his back, allowing him to rest against her. His head fell onto her shoulder, making her fully aware of how uncomfortably close he was. She gazed down at his closed eyes. He actually looked somewhat sweet with his eyes closed and his features so relaxed.

Unconsciously, Sakura's eyes closed for a moment as she buried her tiny nose into Gaara's unruly hair, taking a deep breath of his peculiar, yet invigorating scent.

When the realization struck her, Sakura's eyes shot open, and she found Gaara staring up at her. Laughing sheepishly, she quickly lifted her head, but the musky scent remained lingering.

_I REALLY need to work on being more concealed._

"Well, what do you say, shall we work on restoring your chakra now? Will you be alright sitting up by yourself? If you need to, you could lie down."

Sakura was rambling. Something she always seemed to do when she was caught in an uncomfortable situation, which lately, with Gaara around, seemed to be quite frequent.

"Go ahead. I'm fine," Gaara stated blandly as he sat up.

_He sure is a man of many words._ Sakura chuckled at her own silent sarcasm as she positioned herself in front of Gaara on the ground. She stared for a moment at his stomach, deeply pondering the idea of asking him to remove his robe so she could get a better connection with his chakra circulatory system.

_If I ask him to take his robes off, there's no telling what he's got underneath... if anything. Even if he has pants on, he probably has no shirt. That could only lead to bad things._

Gaara watched Sakura closely as she performed small gestures, cocking her head from side to side, scratching her chin, nodding, shaking her head, all whilst staring at his chest.

"What's the problem?"

Gaara's question startled Sakura out of her train of thought. She laughed awkwardly again, knowing she had been caught in another one of her dramatic inner dilemmas. She quickly searched her thoughts for a sensible excuse for her silent staring. Nothing came, so she just blurted out her true thoughts.

"Take your clothes off!"

Gaara's typically unmoving features twisted in a look of confusion. Sakura's face followed suit. She had caught herself off guard just as much as Gaara. Her face turned beet red, another thing she seemed to be doing frequently, around Gaara in particular.

"I mean, I need you to take your robe off... so I can tap into your chakra center."

She thought she caught a glimpse of him smirking as he stood to obligingly remove his robe. Nervousness entered her being as she stared up at the Kazekage, fearing what he may or may not be wearing beneath the robe. A lump formed in her throat, which she attempted to swallow, only leading her to start choking. She coughed and gagged rather stridently, her attention leaving Gaara momentarily while she tried to concentrate on breathing normally.

"What's wrong with you?"

Gaara's question only provoked more choking, and soon Sakura's face was turning a shade other than red... purple.

Gaara knelt down in front of Sakura, his robe now removed, leaving him only in a pair of loose fitting black shorts, which Sakura was incapable of noticing as she continued to gag and sputter pathetically. Gaara reached a hand around Sakura's backside, and with a quick violent swing, he smacked her back, nearly knocking the wind out of her.

Sakura gasped, air rushing from her lungs at the brute force exerted into her back. She held a hand to her chest, taking several deep breaths before glaring up at Gaara, who still crouched before her.

"Was that really necessary?" Sakura screeched, her voice cracking from the dryness of her throat.

"I thought you were choking," Gaara stated blandly, his eyes glued to Sakura's.

"Thanks," Sakura muttered sarcastically, clearing her throat several times before she finally felt like she could breathe at a somewhat normal and comfortable pace. Her eyes fell upon the white and blue robe lying in a neat pile behind Gaara, cluing her in on the fact that he had removed it. Apprehensively, she turned back to Gaara. Thankfully, he wore pants, but unfortunately, no shirt. So, as fearfully expected, she found herself unable to tear her eyes away from his nicely chiseled chest and abdomen.

_He has got to be the most strangely gorgeous, distracting, young man I have ever seen._

_I knew you'd see things my way._ Inner Sakura tormented.

Sakura shook her head, breaking her gaze from Gaara's chest and returning to his face, where she should be looking.

"OK. I guess you should lie down. It will make this easier." Sakura attempted to sound collected and professional, her full attention on the science she came to study. Though, she really wasn't fooling anyone, not even herself.

Without a word, Gaara lay down across the sand-covered ground, resting his head on his neatly folded robes. Sakura moved herself to his side, sitting with her legs bent beneath her. She watched intently as she slowly placed her hands upon Gaara's bare stomach. His skin jumped beneath her touch, his stomach quaking visibly. Sakura blinked several times, trying hard to concentrate on her work and not on how fascinatingly good it felt to have her hands pressed firmly against Gaara's bare skin. She closed her eyes lightly, taking deep breaths as she concentrated on feeling Gaara's chakra. Just as her thoughts were almost completely cleared of distractions, Gaara pulled her right back in.

"Sakura, why don't you tell me what you discovered from the last experiment? I think it would be beneficial for me to know as well."

Sakura opened her eyes, gazing down at Gaara as he returned the stare.

"Uh... well..." Cough._ Come on Sakura! Keep your head straight! Don't say anything stupid!_ "Well, I noticed that there are several things that seem to excite Shukaku and thus offer his chakra... one being the sight of blood, which I'm assuming related to the demon's thirst for a thrilling fight. Shukaku also seems to be highly sensitive to your..." _Don't say anything sexual. Find another word or phrase._ Sakura searched the room, as if she would find the answer written plainly on the dimly lit walls. "your... more intimate desires." _Intimate desires? That was definitely sexual!"_

Fearful of Gaara's reaction to her statement, Sakura stared down at her hands. She could feel her palms begin to grow damp with perspiration. Her stomach churned, the situation only seeming to get more and more uncomfortable with each passing minute she spent with Gaara.

_Damn these pubescent girlish hormones of mine!_

"Sakura, your face is turning pale green," Gaara pointed out the obvious, his tone emotionless.

"I'm probably just a little queasy from my coughing fit earlier," Sakura lied.

"Hmm."

Sakura again returned to her task, freeing her mind of the clutter the best she could.

_Just stare at his stomach and pretend it belongs to somebody annoying... somebody like... Naruto!_

Her plan worked momentarily, until she noticed something strange.

_Why does it feel like Gaara still has an enormous amount of chakra? There's no way he could have regained this much after being so drained, even with the aid of Shukaku. But if he did not exert all his energy, then why did he collapse?_

"Gaara?" Sakura spoke, suspicion in her tone of voice.

"Hmm?"

Sakura cocked her head to the side, watching Gaara's expression closely as she spoke.

"I can feel quite a decent amount of chakra still flowing through your body."

Gaara's eyes met hers.

"There's no way that in just several minutes Shukaku could have restored this much chakra."

Brief silence.

"And?" Gaara continued to stare up at Sakura, awaiting her point to be made.

"And I'm wondering why you fainted earlier when you had plenty of chakra. I find that a little strange." Sakura's expression became stern, almost a perfect match to her sensei's typical expressions.

Sakura was taken back when she spotted the right corner of Gaara's mouth slip up into a small smirk.

"Hmm... That is strange."

Sakura's brows furrowed.

"Gaara?"

"Sakura?"

"Are you toying with me?"

"What makes you think that?"

"**Are you toying with me?!**"

"Should I be?"

Sakura released a low growl of frustration. He was definitely toying with her now, which likely meant he had been toying with her this entire time... even during their first session. His smirk was clear as day now, even in the dimly lit room. She knew, that he knew, what everyone else seemed to know, except her, until now. Clearly, this mission was not truly a mission, but just a farce, a scam to set her up in an uncomfortable situation with an uncomfortably distracting and attractive young man.

Despite the dawning of realization, Sakura still felt inclined to ask questions.

"So, how long have you been aware of what's really going on? Did you know what was going on the minute I stepped foot into your quarters for the first experiment? Did Tsunade and Shizune tell you from the start?"

Sakura's rants grew louder, more frustrated as she continued, seeing Gaara's smirk remain plastered on his undeniably handsome face. Without intention, Sakura began pounding her fist into the ground between Gaara and herself, thrusting her fist full force before each statement.

"Were you playing along with their little game? Or was this just coincidence that my mentor and her assistant were toying with me at the same time you were? Have you known all along the inner turmoil this has caused? Do you get your jollies from tormenting me?"

Gaara finally spoke out, interrupting Sakura's rambling.

"Haruno!"

"What?!" Sakura nearly screamed. Her frustration of being so taken advantage of, being so naive, had her feeling terribly embarrassed and uncomfortable. She had ceased her pummeling of the ground, only to leave a small crater in which Gaara's relaxed arm was slowly falling into.

"You talk too much," Gaara stated simply, and without giving Sakura a moment to protest, he sat up and grabbed her by the back of her neck in one swift movement, pulling her head to his as he kissed her with enough force to take her breath away.

Before Sakura could register what was happening, she was on her back with Gaara on top of her, his knee cleverly placed between her legs, leaving her in a rather compromising position. Her red shirt had been unzipped somehow, as she now felt the warm skin of Gaara's bare chest pressing against her own. Gaara was kissing her feverishly, giving her not a moment to breathe. She gave in, kissing back, but she was not about to let him win the battle so easily.

Sakura mustered her strength, and without breaking their heated kiss, she flipped Gaara over, straddling him as their positions were switched. Despite her immense strength, as she tried to pin Gaara's hands above his head, she found she was no match for him, even in his slightly weakened state.

Gaara broke the kiss, both breathing and panting heavily with excitement. He tore his wrists free from Sakura's grasp, and pushed his hands into her shoulders, sending her tumbling onto her back. He was on top of her again, and she was somehow missing her top completely this time.

Sakura tried to force back her blush, embarrassed by the fact that she was lying there topless, and was so easily overpowered.

_I am not letting him get me so easily!_

Sakura was determined to use her most skillful attribute, her sheer strength, to pin Gaara down and make him confess. She concentrated as much chakra as she could in an instant into her right fist and swung full force for Gaara's unsuspecting face. Had it not been for that damned sand, she would have nailed him.

The sand surrounding Gaara shot up in an instant, blocking Sakura's assault. She cursed to herself as her fist crashed into the wall of sand. Pulling her hand back, she watched the sand slowly fall back to the ground, revealing a very surprised Kazekage sitting on her.

"You tried to hit me?!" Gaara shouted, astonishment in his tone.

Sakura smiled deviously.

"Yeah. So what? Are you going to cry about it?"

Gaara's smirk returned to his handsome face.

"You'll be the one crying," he sneered, grabbing Sakura's fists, one after the other, as she took another two swings. He pinned her hands to the ground above her head, just as she had attempted to do to him.

_Why does it sound like he was implying a different meaning to 'crying'?_

Sakura struggled to free her hands from Gaara's unforgiving grasp, thrusting her body upward, hoping to buck him off. Her face twisted and contorted in frustration and concentration, while Gaara continued to sneer as he effortlessly held her in place.

"You're actually somewhat attractive when you're angry."

Gaara's rude comment was enough to piss Sakura off to the point that she mustered enough strength to thrust her hips upward, knocking Gaara off of her and onto his back beside her. His hands still held hers, but with the weight of his body removed from her she was easily able to straddle him, ripping her hands free as she did. She smiled down at him triumphantly. But her victory was short lived as she noticed Gaara's pale eyes turn feral. And just as she suspected, she watched a faint red glow begin to emanate from his entire body.

_Shit! What have I done?!_

She put up no resistance as Gaara pushed her onto her back once again. Her hands were again restrained above her head, but only by one hand this time. She could feel Gaara's intense gaze and followed the path of his stare, discovering that his eyes were glued on her exposed breasts.

_Well, at least I know his intentions aren't to kill._

As she glanced further down, she discovered that her shorts, and even her leg wraps, had been somehow removed. Not only had all her clothing been removed, she noticed as she turned her head to the side, all her articles were lying in a neat pile beside her head, including her boots, which she could have sworn she felt on her just before she turned her head. When she turned to glance down at her feet, she found her path blocked as Gaara's body came crashing down on hers.

"Gaara!" Sakura cried out as her legs were forced to part and allow Gaara's legs between them. She could feel the soft fabric of his shorts press against the exposed flesh between her thighs. She was about to cry out his name again, trying to find some way to protest, but his lips quickly silenced her.

Sakura moaned against his lips as she felt his body pressing tighter against hers. Her cheeks were bright red with heat, but that was the last thing on her mind at the moment. She could feel Gaara's free hand slowly creeping down her side, making her skin crawl with goose-bumps.

Gaara's lower body finally relieved the pressure between Sakura's legs as he slowly lifted himself just inches off her, but only to allow the wandering hand to run lightly down the side of her leg, then tauntingly slow back up the inside of her thigh.

Sakura broke the kiss, gasping as one of Gaara's digits slid inside her.

"Gaara," Sakura whined. She pleaded with him, with the gods, that the torment end, and that he would just take her right there and then. Her eyes were closed, wishing not to see the certain smirk of victory on Gaara's frighteningly gorgeous face. She could feel the heat mixed with chakra flowing from Gaara's body, and she was certain he was concentrating much of that heat and chakra into his delving finger, no, fingers now.

Gaara brought his face down beside Sakura's, his lips brushing against her earlobe. She opened her eyes in a daze as he whispered in her ear, his voice even more deep and throaty than usual.

"I told you, you'd be the one crying."

In that moment, Sakura was certain she would **never** think the same of Suna's Kazekage, Gaara of the Desert, ever again. She was in heaven, and she was no longer feeling the need to punish Gaara for toying with her. The so-called 'experiment' was no longer a concern to her. She probably could learn a lot from what was happening as she lay beneath Gaara, but she didn't care anymore about science, at least not Bijuus and the related.

Sakura watched in a daze as Gaara brought his face over hers, staring down at her as if looking for a reaction. It was obvious though, that she was enjoying herself at the moment, as her lids were partly closed, and her hot breath passed her parted lips in wavering huffs.

A strange feeling brought Sakura out of her daze momentarily. The sand beneath her body felt as if it were moving, like the tiny little grains were pressing up against the skin of her backside. Her eyes opened wider, startled as her hands felt a strange sensation. They were being slowly lifted, which, as she turned her head to the side, she realized was what was also happening to the rest of her body.

Gaara slowly removed his fingers, earning a soft whimper of protest from Sakura. He gave her a quick heated kiss before lifting himself off. Now on his feet, he took a moment to just gaze down at Sakura. Her pink hair was strewn about, obviously disheveled from their aforementioned romp. Her green eyes sparkled in the faint light of the few remaining candles. Her features were soft, gentle, innocent, and yet, he knew she was not really so innocent.

Sakura gazed up at Gaara, feeling terribly uncomfortable with his pale eyes just staring at her while she lay there completely nude and flustered. She could tell he was only admiring her, but the knowledge did nothing to ease her mind and body. Her eyes drifted to his fingers which were hovering before him, and she realized they were those that had just explored her. They were glowing with the faint red of Shukaku's chakra, providing enough light to reveal traces of her own juices. Her face grew hotter, remembering what he had done in their last 'experiment'.

_Please don't do that again. I'll go insane._

As if hearing her silent pleas, Gaara brought the two fingers to his now parted lips, just as he had done last time, in that same tauntingly slow, smooth manner. His eyes never left hers as his tongue snaked out and slid slowly up the two fingers.

_This guy is sick! But why am I enjoying it so much?_

"Sakura," Gaara spoke her name, his voice dripping with lust, and yet somehow serious too.

No reply.

"**Sakura!**"

The sand beneath Sakura ceased and fell back tot he ground, bringing her down gently with it. She shook her head quickly, startled by Gaara raising his voice and the sudden feeling of descent.

"Sorry. What?"

"Do you want this?"

Sakura gave a puzzled look.

"Do I want what?"

Gaara shook his head at Sakura's naivety. Her mind was obviously overrun by her rapture. He released a deep sigh before attempting to clarify.

"I'm not going to take you if you're unwilling. So, do you want this?"

Sakura finally got the picture, but she was at a loss for words. She undeniably wanted _**it**_. She wanted _**him**_. There was no denying her lust for Gaara. There was no denying how attractive his rough and robust features were. There was no denying how sinfully sexy his eyes were, and his deep throaty voice. But she had no idea what to expect, or how to act in these _sexual_ situations. Having never even kissed a man before Gaara, she had already traveled way past that base. She would have thought the same could be said for Gaara, but as he stood before her, with that feral grin and a devilish glint in his eyes, it seemed as though he knew perfectly well what he was doing. Then again, he only seemed to act so confidently when that peculiar red chakra of Shukaku's appeared. Perhaps that was just part of his game too. Maybe he was capable of channeling that power at will, and he only used it to fool her.

She couldn't say no, but she couldn't say yes either. Admitting her sinful desires was not something that came easily to her. Her inner turmoil had her searching the dark room frantically. Her eyes scanned for inspiration to answer his question, but she found nothing. She returned to gaze up meekly at Gaara. His arms were now crossed over his chest, apparently growing impatient. Realizing again that she was lying there stark naked, she covered her privates with her hands, which earned her a small, surprisingly gentle smile from Gaara.

"You can say no."

Sakura was taken back by Gaara's demonstration of compassion, but it still didn't help her. She did not want to say no.

"How are you so damned confident and comfortable with this?!" Sakura shouted her thoughts out loud. She lowered her voice as she continued, regretting starting the conversation. "I thought you had never been with a girl before."

Gaara released a small chuckle.

"I couldn't tell you why for certain. Perhaps you have the ability to bring out this side of me or, rather, you're capable of exciting Shukaku, which gives me this boost of confidence."

Gaara paused briefly, trying not to overwhelm Sakura's clouded head with his uncharacteristically lengthy reply, and to take a moment to assess Sakura's features. He could tell now, that she wanted to take things further. She was only being shy.

"You know, you wouldn't need to hide yourself if you got fired up like you did earlier. Like I said, you're actually somewhat attractive when you're angry."

Sakura's features twisted, turning from astonishment to rage in less than a second. _That haughty little bastard!_ But she quickly realized what he was up to, and she wasn't about to give him what he wanted. Her lips curled up into a devious smile to match his.

"Well at least somebody here can be referred to as attractive," Sakura sneered. She was now sitting up, no longer caring that she wore nothing, as her confidence slowly returned.

Another small chuckle erupted from Gaara's stomach, which unfortunately caught Sakura's attention as she watched his firm stomach quake.

"Sakura," Gaara spoke calmly.

"WHAT?" Sakura snapped, annoyed that he was so calm and smooth.

"You're not fooling me."

Sakura was growing frustrated again, her brows furrowing in disgust.

_This guy has got to have a weak point._

_I can think of one._ Inner Sakura spoke in a sultry tone.

_Not now! No way am I giving into him this easily!_

Sakura jumped to her feet, standing close enough to Gaara that the tip of her nose touched his. She glared daggers at him, but he easily met her gaze, his features stoic and calm. She could still see a glint of arrogance in his eyes. Little did she know, standing up to him was only exciting him further.

"Well, you're not fooling me either! I can tell you find me utterly gorgeous even when I'm not angry." As Sakura ranted, she flipped her head around defiantly, her pink hair swiping across Gaara's unwavering face. "How else would I be 'capable of exciting' you, if not by my undeniably sexy girlish figure?" As she spoke of her figure, she accentuated by running her hands down the sides of her curvy little frame.

Gaara gave Sakura's body a quick criticizing once over before replying dryly.

"Undeniably? Hmm..."

"Yes! Undeniably sexy!" Sakura reiterated. Just as she finished her statement, she realized the sand beneath her feet had begun to move again.

"Well, if it can't be denied..."

The red chakra surrounding Gaara flared, and as Sakura realized his intentions, she was too late.

The sand beneath Sakura's feet suddenly swept forward, causing her to lose balance and tumble backwards. Before she could hit the floor, something caught her, something strange; the sand. She gasped as she was quickly carried across the room by a swarm of sand. She was given no time to react as the sand surrounded her, lifting her into an upright position and forcing her against the wall of the building. A ring of sand swirled around her waist and thighs, holding her against the wall, her feet just inches off the floor. Sakura's confidence and peace of mind was once again stripped from her in an instant.

Her eyes fell to the sand swirling around her thighs as she felt it slowly begin to lift her legs. She whined in protest, and her eyes spoke of her terror, as the sand began to pull at her thighs, threatening to spread them apart. She grasped her knees, which were now lifted out before her, and forced them together, trying to prevent her legs from being spread apart to reveal her increasingly wet and warm nether regions. She had a fairly good idea what was happening, but she was filled with apprehension and embarrassment over being forced into such a vulnerable and sexual position.

The sand was too powerful though, her legs being forced to spread inch by inch, despite her efforts to do otherwise. With her attention on her legs, she had failed to notice Gaara had removed his shorts, and was now slowly sauntering towards her.

"Sakura," Gaara whispered in a deep and sultry tone as he came to stand beside Sakura.

Sakura lifted her head quickly, startled by Gaara's unexpected appearance at her side. She stared into his eyes fearfully, pleadingly.

Gaara placed a hand behind Sakura's head as he pressed his lips gently against her ear.

"Don't worry Sakura. I won't hurt you. Besides, this is what we both wanted."

His words of comfort brought only a small mount of ease to Sakura's mind. But as he brought his lips to hers, she felt more of her worries slip away. His tongue prodded at her lips, and she willingly allowed its entry. She moaned against his mouth, his delicious flavor flooding her senses. She allowed herself to relax, releasing her grip on her knees and letting her arms fall to her sides. The sand quickly spread her thighs until they were pressed almost completely against the wall. Had she not been so caught up in her ever growing desire, she would have been amazed by her own flexibility.

Gaara broke their kiss, but only for a moment as he repositioned himself between Sakura's widely spread legs. His lips found hers again, and this time, her tongue was the first to come out to play.

Sakura's eyes closed softly as Gaara's hands began to gently massage the insides of her thighs with the aid of the sand. His fingers along with the sand pressed rhythmically against her soft skin, aiding her in further relaxation.

_I can not believe this is happening! He has me pinned up against the wall with me spread-eagle, completely vulnerable. I never imagined anything like this, especially not with Gaara of the Desert._

Although she was completely baffled by her recent and current affairs with Gaara, Sakura was certain she would never want it any other way, or with any other man for that matter.

Gaara's hands soon made their way further up Sakura's thighs, leaving the sand behind to continue in the massaging motions. The sand around her waist continued to keep her pressed securely against the wall of the abandoned building.

Sakura broke their kiss with a gasp as Gaara's thumbs slid gently across her wet folds. Her eyes went wide as a set of fingers slid inside her once again, causing a wave of heat to wash over her body. Her head lolled back in ecstasy, and instinctively, her hands grabbed for something; his erection. This earned her a deep groan from Gaara, and surprise for herself as she realized that he had obviously removed his shorts.

Gaara buried his head in the nape of Sakura's neck as he released a throaty growl, pleasure filling him at the feel of Sakura's soft skin pressed firmly against his hardened member. Now his eyes were closed as he received his well deserved indulgence.

Sakura too let her lids flutter shut as Gaara continued to prod at her wet insides. The two delved and rubbed in synchronous motions, provoking moans of pleasure and the release of their hot breaths against each other. The combination of the motions of the sand, the flickering of the few remaining candles, the sensual touching, and the soft sounds of heated pleasure, created a symphony of light, sound, and sensation.

Sakura whimpered in protest as Gaara's fingers slowly withdrew, her grip on his member growing more aggressive. He wore a subtle smirk, just barely visible through Sakura's lust-glazed eyes.

Releasing her iron grip on Gaara, Sakura gazed wantonly into his eyes, pleading silently for him to continue, to touch her more. He gave her a short heated kiss before taking a step back.

Sakura's eyes followed Gaara's hands as one grasped her right thigh, the other taking hold of his erection. Her eyes grew wide as realization of his next move became apparent.

_Oh God no! Please tell me he is NOT going to try to put that... That is so definitely NOT going to fit!_

Sakura's mind screamed protests, but her body did nothing to thwart Gaara's advances. Her sparkling eyes returned to Gaara's, hoping to read his own thoughts, but his devious smile seemed to say he felt no apprehension in the matter.

Gaara stepped closer again, and Sakura's breath hitched as she felt him press just barely against her entrance. He held it there for a moment as he whispered huskily, "It's ok to scream Sakura. I'm the only one who will hear you."

_OH. MY. GOD!_

There was little time for Sakura to react with her astonishment at Gaara's bold statement. He began to slowly ease through her entrance, allowing them both to relish in the astonishing new sensations overtaking their bodies.

The red glow of Shukaku's chakra surrounding Gaara began to flare again as he pushed his member deeper inside. Sakura's eyes fluttered shut and she sucked in a deep breath, unconsciously holding it in. When he reached the point where Sakura's wet folds enveloped him to the hilt, both his hands grasped her thighs tightly, a deep growl resonating from his throat as he rested his forehead against hers, his eyes closed tightly shut.

Sakura's head lolled back as she released a quick heated breath she had been containing. The sensations filling her were indescribable. The bright colors she had seen just from the pleasure of his roaming hands were nothing in comparison to what flashed behind her eyes now. She saw shapes and colors she never knew existed. She breathed his name aloud, reveling in the pleasure of speaking his gorgeous name.

"Gaara."

"Sakura."

The two remained still for a moment, the only audible sounds were there deep panting and the soft rustling sound of the sand that held Sakura's thighs and waist against the wall.

Sakura took the time to collect herself, gather her thoughts. This had not at all been what she had expected to come of their little 'experiment'.

_He fit alright. Oh... he fit... He fits perfectly._ Sakura was actually in complete agreement with her inner self. There was no denying how badly she wanted Gaara. There was no turning back now, and no excuses could cover their current predicament. This certainly could not be explained as 'experimental' or 'in the name of science'. Perhaps chemistry, as it seemed to Sakura that she and Gaara definitely held some sort of extremely sexy chemistry, or maybe it was just the simple fact that Sakura had raging hormones and Gaara was a conveniently available _sexy_ subject for her release.

Gaara began to slowly slide out, knocking Sakura out of her daydream. They both groaned at the returning sensations.

Gaara's pace started out slow and steady, his and Sakura's moans and breathing matching the rhythm of his thrusts. It wasn't long though, before his tempo accelerated to speeds and force that had them both nearly crying each others names.

"Gaa- Ra!" Sakura howled in ecstasy as she felt Gaara's erection thrust deep enough inside her to touch the back of her inner walls. She wrapped her arms tightly around his back as if holding on for dear life. Before she could release another cry with his next thrust, Gaara's crushed his lips against hers.

Seconds felt like minutes, and minutes felt like hours while Gaara continued to plunge in and out of Sakura. She dug her nails in his back, surprisingly drawing small trickles of blood from his punctured skin without the protection of his sand armor.

The colors behind Sakura's eyes began to take shapes, forming colorful replicas of Gaara's devilish smirk and sinister eyes. She was certain she was hallucinating from the lack of oxygen as Gaara's lips and tongue had her nearly choking, giving her not a moment to breathe.

As Gaara finally released her mouth, the two gasped, but the refreshing return of air did nothing to ease the extraordinary images flashing before Sakura's closed eyes. Though this was a completely new experience for her, she could tell she was on the verge of release, and he was too.

Escaping the colorful visions playing in her mind, Sakura lifted her head and opened her glazed-over eyes and found only a more disturbing piece of imagery before her. Sand appeared to seep from cracks in the armor over Gaara's face.

_This guy is like a drug!_

Sakura's head turned to the side as Gaara's mouth made its way to her neck, his teeth pressing against her supple skin as he continued to nearly pummel her against the wall in an act of pure passion.

Sakura's green eyes gazed half-lidded at the walls. Sand slowly crumbled from the walls, which she initially assumed was due to the sheer force of Gaara's thrusting, but as she spotted a sudden strange change in environment, she started to think otherwise. The sand on the walls and floor began to form large bubbles, popping and reforming like hot magma.

_I'm hallucinating from sex. I never knew it possible._

Her eyes closed once again, and a serene smile graced her features as she saw a flash of white, reaching her peak in unison with Gaara.

"Sakura!" Gaara howled her name at his release, the sound echoing eerily through the empty room. The sand pinning Sakura to the wall quickly released and cascaded to the floor and Gaara collapsed onto his back, taking Sakura down with him as he remained inside her. The two lie in a heap with Sakura on top of Gaara, her head lying besides his. Both of them panted heavily at the aftermath.

Sakura was still completely out of her senses, but she had somehow managed to stay conscious throughout the entire ordeal, which was something to brag about after her last escapade with Gaara.

Gaara's limp body beneath hers felt surprisingly soft and comfortable as they both attempted to catch their breath. He turned his head to face hers, staring at her in silence. Her cheeks began to flush in embarrassment as she slowly came to her senses and realized exactly what had just happened.

A smirk played at the corners of Gaara's lips as he spoke, huffing between words as he still struggled to return his breathing to normal pace.

"So Haruno..." Huff. "...What do you say to making this 'experiment' a weekly event?"

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_A/N: There will be ONE more chapter, mostly to wrap things up, but probably not anymore 'lemons' as they make me terribly uncomfortable. Gaara is such a devious little sex-fiend isn't he? Mmmmm..._


	4. The Return Home

_A/N: Final Chapter! Thanks so much to EVERYONE who reviewed my previous chapters. But please, offer more suggestions on improvement. Even if I disagree with them, it's still good for me to hear other people's views. And although I have a grammar/spell-checker and I re-read my fics along with my significant other, I know there can still be errors we miss. So please, point out those things, BUT BE SPECIFIC! 'Cause if neither I nor my significant other caught them, I may not realize improper punctuation, wording, structure, etc. It drives me nuts when somebody says there were some grammar/spelling errors but they don't tell me specifically what. I re-read my stories after comments like that and still find nothing that my knowledge says is wrong, so PLEASE ENLIGHTEN ME! I am not an English major, so I'm certain I don't know all the rules._

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**Experimentation**

**Chapter 4: The Return Home**

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Upon her long journey home, Sakura had plenty of time to reflect on her recent affairs. She was utterly astonished over everything that had happened between her and Gaara... Gaara of the Desert... the Kazekage! It wasn't that she was complaining, it was just that explaining their sudden development of a relationship might prove to be a rather difficult task, and there was no way to deny the romance, seeing as she had agreed to make their meetings a reoccurring event.

Sakura smiled as a thought occurred to her.

_Tsunade and Shizune are going to be dying to know what happened, but I am NOT going to tell them one detail of the matter._

As she leapt from tree branch to tree branch, she devised her plan of action. She was going to have the women begging for details.

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Sakura stood just outside the door to Tsunade's quarters, wearing a bright and playful smile on her face as she prepared for her predicted greeting. The dark of night had already taken over the streets of Konoha, so she wanted to make this meeting quick and sweet. She wrung her hands tightly around the handles of her medical bag from her anticipation of the reactions she was soon to see. However, as she slowly opened the door and strutted inside the room, she was surprised to find Tsunade and Shizune standing not more than a few feet before her, staring at her, as if they had been aware of her presence and waiting ever so anxiously.

Tsunade tried to withhold her smirk, but Sakura could see it past her fake stern expression. Shizune, though, held her excited smile without shame, her eyes lighting up and glistening as Sakura strolled past her.

Sakura's smile only grew as she paraded toward Tsunade's desk, turning to face the women as she leaned casually against the desk, setting down her bag and resting her hands upon the ledge with a carefree attitude. Tonton perked up from her snoozing spot at the opposite end of the desk, turning to Sakura curiously.

Tsunade and Shizune turned to Sakura, curiously observing her cool, calm smile. Tsunade was the first to speak of Sakura's 'special mission'.

"So, I'm awaiting your report." Tsunade tried to remain professional sounding, as if what she was really interested in was the results of the 'experiment' she had assigned. Sakura knew better though, but she wasn't going to lead on to that. She would rather just play with them a bit.

"Well, the experiment was not much of a success actually." Sakura began slowly. She turned her attention away from the women, trying desperately not to crack a smile that might give away that she was toying with them. "Things did not exactly go as planned."

"Really?" Tsunade questioned, attempting to sound surprised.

"Yeah... We weren't even able to completely drain him of his chakra. I guess we should have planned this out a little better. I didn't want to just spar with him, seeing as part of the experiment required me to use my own chakra to aid in his restoration." Sakura smiled inwardly, knowing that both Tsunade and Shizune were expecting the more _juicy_ details than what she was leading on to.

"So what did you end up doing all this time if it was so unsuccessful?" Tsunade prodded. She was clearly growing impatient, her arms folded across her chest as her right foot began to tap not so softly on the floor.

"I did eventually find a way to drain his chakra, but it did unfortunately drain me as well."

Shizune and Tsunade's eyes lit up at Sakura's statement, the ideas racing through their heads as to the possibilities.

"So what was your method?" Shizune nearly blurted out.

Sakura pushed herself off the desk, turning to gaze out the window to the dimly lit streets below the tower as a smirk made its way to her face.

_I've got them hook, line, and sinker!_

"We ended up doing exactly what I said wouldn't work. We fought it out."

Jaws dropped nearly to the floor. That had not been the response Tsunade or Shizune were expecting.

Sakura laughed silently within her mind at her own clever wit. She hadn't exactly lied to the women. She and Gaara had 'fought' alright... fought for dominance as they straddled each other.

Sakura lifted a hand to her lips, trying to stifle the small chortle near the brink of bursting out. Even with her back to Tsunade and Shizune. She knew damn well they were astonished that supposedly nothing had happened between her and Gaara.

"So..." Tsunade began slowly, suspiciously, "Nothing else happened? Not like the last experiment?"

Now Sakura had to lie... sort of.

"No, not like last experiment." _It went __**so**__ much further!_

Their first 'experiment' was not the slightest bit comparable to their most recent.

Realizing she was incapable of withholding her glee at victory any longer, Sakura turned to the two women with a cool smile.

"Well, sorry to cut this so short, but I **really** need to get some rest." And did she ever so need some rest. After her remarkable romp with Gaara, followed by the long travel home, she was sure she would sleep for two days straight.

"Alright. I hope you know we will have to try this again if it was not a success." Despite the suspicion in Tsunade's tone, Sakura was confident her mentor would never discover the true events that had taken place.

"Sure thing. Later," Sakura replied nonchalantly as she waved them off, slipping through the door and closing it behind her. She released a relieved sigh, and her smile of triumph returned. She was certain her 'accidentally forgotten' medical bag which contained a notebook full of cleverly written ambiguous information would grasp Tsunade's attention.

* * *

Tsunade and Shizune exchanged glances, both having the same thing on their minds. Shizune was the first to voice her thoughts after their brief silence.

"So, do you think anything _did_ happen between Sakura and Gaara?"

Tsunade scratched her chin thoughtfully as she strode to the large window lining the back of her office. As she passed her desk, something caught the corner of her eye. She halted, turning to the answer to her undying curiosity. There, lying on the desk in plain sight was Sakura's medical bag, which was sure to contain clues, clues such as her notebook in which Sakura had wrote many details of her last 'experiment', and surely she had written many more of the most recent. A large grin swept over her features, her eyes brightening.

"I think I found our answer!"

Shizune's face lit up just as brightly as she watched her master swipe up Sakura's medical bag and quickly open it, retrieving the ever-so-desired notebook of truth!

Tsunade slowly opened the notebook while Shizune made her way to her side, peering down at the open pages in anticipation.

Eventually, Tsunade came upon an entry titled 'Second Experiment: Chakra Restoration'. She smiled amusedly as she began to read the neatly scribbled notes aloud.

"Upon arrival Gaara of the Desert was quick to guide me to a private location just on the border of Sunagakure."

Tsunade and Shizune exchanged amused glances at the mention of 'private location' before returning anxiously to the notes.

"Unfortunately I came unprepared with a plan to deplete the Kazekage's chakra without using up most of my own. Thankfully, Gaara is much more intelligent than his demon-controlled form led on to. He suggested the method of mixing his chakra with the sand covering the floor of the abandoned guard station. This proved to be semi-useful, as only a portion of his chakra was exhausted. That was when I decided to use a much less... practical approach."

Their smiles and anticipation began to grow with each passing sentence read aloud.

"Needless to say, much of my own chakra and stamina was exhausted, but it was well worth it. It turns out that Gaara was capable of restoring his own chakra fairly quickly with the aid of Shukaku, much quicker than a typical ninja of his rank and age. However, given my... medical abilities, I was able to increase the rate of chakra replenishment to almost double."

Shizune released a small giggle. Though the words were not stating anything bluntly, there were still little implications within Sakura's words. Unfortunately though, as Tsunade read the last few lines of Sakura's entry, they realized too much was left to their imaginations.

"As I have learned from this experiment as well as my first, Shukaku has a strong effect on Gaara's chakra, mind, and stamina when influenced... properly."

Tsunade closed the notebook, slipping it back into the medical bag as if never touched. She turned to Shizune with a matching blank expression; both were still left with unanswered questions.

* * *

Sakura made her way to the concrete steps leading to the front door of her small first floor apartment, smiling while picturing Tsunade and Shizune's faces when they read her notebook. She had written her supposed experimental notes just before arriving at the Hokage headquarters, knowing her mentor could not resist spying for more information.

As she reached her key out to the doorknob, something caught her attention glimmering under the faint glow of the light hanging just above her front door. She glanced down at her welcome mat, which she realized was covered in what she thought to be dirt.

"Damn kids. Always screwing around by my doorstep." she muttered under her breath before pushing the door open.

Walking into the small entry way, Sakura flipped a small switch. As light flooded the small area, she spotted more of the offending particles scattered across the tiled floor just at her feet.

"That's strange."

Kneeling down, Sakura ran her finger across the fine tan-colored particles, lifting the finger to her face for closer examination.

"Hmm... This isn't the right consistency for dirt... it's too grainy... like..." She paused, pondering the thought of what she now realized it to be. "...sand?"

Sakura stood back up, brushing the particles of sand from her finger against the side of her shorts.

"How the hell did I get sand in my apartment?"

While pondering when and where she could have tracked in the sand, Sakura removed her tall dark boots, leaving them on a small rug at the side of the door.

Feeling utterly exhausted from her travels, she decided to leave the matter be for the night and head straight to bed. Flipping off the entry light, she made her way towards her bedroom, relying only on the two night lights placed in the living room and hallway connecting to the bedroom.

Just as she stepped into the hallway, she found yet another peculiar spectacle, her door was closed. She **never** left her bedroom door closed, **never**. Unconsciously, she sucked in a deep breath, holding it in as she crept up to her door fearfully. She paused momentarily as she heard quiet shuffling from within her room.

_Somebody is in my apartment!_

Something strange beneath her feet turned her attention to the floor. The faint illumination from the nightlight was not enough to reveal what lie on her carpet beneath her feet, just before her bedroom door. It wasn't necessary though, the texture was all too familiar... more sand.

She had her idea of who it may be.

_But there's no way it could be him. He wouldn't just pop up here... so soon... so unexpectedly... IN MY APARTMENT! It can't be him... I just got back. He would have had to beat me here somehow. That's just not possible. There is either someone else in my apartment, or I'm just losing it and imagined this whole thing up in my head!_

Releasing her breath, Sakura reached for the knob, slowly turning it. She had to find out, one way or the other, whether she was crazy, or somebody really was in there. She had to know.

As she pushed the door open, just enough to allow her to peer inside, she could see nothing. Her room was completely black, not an iota of light. Her blinds were obviously closed, blocking the moon's rays, and the nightlight she had always had on was either burnt out, or worse... removed by someone.

Sakura's suspicions were finally confirmed at the husky words spoken by the offender undoubtedly situated across the room... on her bed.

"Good evening Haruno. I don't suppose you would mind beginning our third session so soon?"

_Guess I won't be getting that sleep tonight._

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END

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_A/N: All reviews are good reviews. I love to hear what readers think! Thanks one more time for all who read and reviewed!_


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